1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a support apparatus for a seating device. More particularly, this invention relates to a support apparatus for selectively providing both dorsal and ventral support to a user seated in a seating device, such as a chair or stool, for example. The support may be selectively moved from the dorsal-supporting position to the ventral-supporting position by a user while in the seated position. Additionally, when the support apparatus is in the ventral-supporting position, the user is not required to straddle any portion of the support apparatus.
2. Description of the Related Art
In the workplace, persons are often required to perform repetitive manual tasks in a sedentary position. By maintaining a sedentary position throughout the workday, the person can become fatigued without proper support. By utilizing ergonomic principles when designing furniture, worker productivity is increased, worker fatigue and absenteeism are decreased, and blood flow throughout the body is improved.
In many applications, it is desirable to properly support the upper torso of a person seated in a seating device, such as a chair or stool for example, throughout the day. In some instances, it may be desirable to provide a support for a user's back such that the user may lean back against the support apparatus. Thus, it is desirable in some instances for a support to provide dorsal support for a user. Dorsal support is support for the back of the user's upper torso.
In other circumstances, it is desirable to provide ventral support for a user. Ventral support is support for the front side of the user's upper torso. For instance, some operations at workstations within certain industrial settings, require a user to lean forward or repeatedly reach forward. Over time, the user may become fatigued while remaining in this forward-leaning position. Thus, it desirable in some situations to provide ventral support for a worker or user.
It is known to provide back supports for a user sitting in a chair. For instance, the background section of U.S. Pat. No. 6,220,663 to Benden et al., assigned to Neutral Posture Ergonomics, Inc. (incorporated herein by reference in its entirety) describes prior art chairs and patents directed to providing support for the back of a user, including lumbar support, while seated in the chair. However, these traditional backrests provide only dorsal support, and are generally not suitable for providing ventral support of a user.
It is also known to provide ventral support for a user. For instance, a ventral rest may be provided on the workstation, not the chair. A user in the chair may then lean against the ventral rest on the workstation while leaning forward. However, this requires two separate pieces of equipment (the chair and the rest on the workstation) which can be problematic in a busy manufacturing floor, for example, as a user on one shift may desire ventral support while the user of the next shift at the same station may desire dorsal support. As these ventral supports on the workstations are not adjustable, other means for providing dorsal support would be required.
It is also known to have a rest that may provide both ventral and dorsal support. With these devices, the rest is simply placed on the floor or workstation and the user leans against the rest while standing. However, these ventral-support devices having this dual capability are “stand and lean” devices. As these devices are designed for standing users, each is limited to the specific height of the present user. When a user of a different height replaces the current user, such as after changing shifts, another stand and lean device must be used for the new user.
Finally, it is known to have a rest that has two brackets to mount the rest to the chair: one on the front of the chair (for ventral support) and one on the rear of the chair (for dorsal support). With these devices, the rest may be mounted to the first bracket to provide ventral support. To change the configuration, the user must get out of the chair, remove the rest, and insert the rest into the second bracket. Again, this configuration requires two separate pieces of equipment, which may lead to the rest becoming misplaced.
Further, when the rest is in the position to provide ventral support, the user must mount the chair from the back, with his or her legs straddling the bracket. This straddling is undesirable to users in various workplace situations.
For the foregoing reasons, there is a need for a single, versatile support apparatus which can be used to selectively provide both dorsal and ventral support for a user. It is desirable that the apparatus be easily converted from traditional dorsal support of the upper body to ventral support of the upper body. It is desirable that the support apparatus be operable without the user having to straddle any portion of the apparatus. It is also desirable that the support apparatus be adjustable from a dorsal-supporting position to ventral-supporting position, by a user while remaining in a seated position. Finally, it is desirable that the apparatus be comprised of generally one piece of equipment, attachable to the seating device, so that the two do not become separated.